Data / Military expenditure / Saudi Arabia

Military expenditure in Saudi Arabia

Military expenditure in Saudi Arabia was 6.5% of GDP in 2025, according to the World Bank. That is up 0.1 pts from 2024. That is the 5th highest of 149 countries in 2025.

2025, % of GDP6.5
Change on 2024+0.1 pts
Rank5th of 149Countries ranked
Series high191984
Series low5.72022

Military expenditure in Saudi Arabia, 1963 to 2025

CSVChart (SVG)

510152019631972198419942003201220251963: 5.9 % of GDP1964: 6 % of GDP1965: 7.7 % of GDP1966: 11.3 % of GDP1967: 11.5 % of GDP1968: 8.1 % of GDP1969: 9.6 % of GDP1970: 9.4 % of GDP1971: 8.6 % of GDP1972: 10.1 % of GDP1973: 10.8 % of GDP1977: 15.6 % of GDP1978: 16.7 % of GDP1979: 15.8 % of GDP1980: 12.6 % of GDP1981: 13.3 % of GDP1982: 17.7 % of GDP1983: 17 % of GDP1984: 19 % of GDP1985: 17 % of GDP1987: 16.9 % of GDP1988: 15.2 % of GDP1989: 13.4 % of GDP1990: 14 % of GDP1991: 12.5 % of GDP1992: 11.3 % of GDP1993: 12.5 % of GDP1994: 10.6 % of GDP1995: 9.3 % of GDP1996: 8.5 % of GDP1997: 11 % of GDP1998: 14.3 % of GDP1999: 11.4 % of GDP2000: 10.5 % of GDP2001: 11.4 % of GDP2002: 9.8 % of GDP2003: 8.7 % of GDP2004: 8.1 % of GDP2005: 7.7 % of GDP2006: 7.8 % of GDP2007: 8.5 % of GDP2008: 7.4 % of GDP2009: 9.6 % of GDP2010: 8.6 % of GDP2011: 7.1 % of GDP2012: 7.5 % of GDP2013: 8.7 % of GDP2014: 10.3 % of GDP2015: 12.6 % of GDP2016: 9.2 % of GDP2017: 9.5 % of GDP2018: 8.4 % of GDP2019: 7.4 % of GDP2020: 8.4 % of GDP2021: 6.4 % of GDP2022: 5.7 % of GDP2023: 6.4 % of GDP2024: 6.4 % of GDP2025: 6.5 % of GDP
% of GDP. Source: World Bank. Retrieved 2026-10-09, published 2026-10-08.
All 59 values
Period% of GDP
20256.5
20246.4
20236.4
20225.7
20216.4
20208.4
20197.4
20188.4
20179.5
20169.2
201512.6
201410.3
20138.7
20127.5
20117.1
20108.6
20099.6
20087.4
20078.5
20067.8
20057.7
20048.1
20038.7
20029.8
200111.4
200010.5
199911.4
199814.3
199711
19968.5
19959.3
199410.6
199312.5
199211.3
199112.5
199014
198913.4
198815.2
198716.9
198517
198419
198317
198217.7
198113.3
198012.6
197915.8
197816.7
197715.6
197310.8
197210.1
19718.6
19709.4
19699.6
19688.1
196711.5
196611.3
19657.7
19646
19635.9

Rankings

Definition

Military expenditure as a percentage of GDP: current and capital spending on the armed forces, including peacekeeping forces, defence ministries, paramilitary forces trained for military operations and military space activities. World Bank series from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

SIPRI definition, so values can differ from the NATO defence expenditure figures used for the 2% target.

How to cite

World Bank, World Development Indicators. Military expenditure, % of GDP (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

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Questions

What is the military spending as a share of GDP in Saudi Arabia?

Military expenditure in Saudi Arabia was 6.5% of GDP in 2025, according to the World Bank. That is up 0.1 pts from 2024. That is the 5th highest of 149 countries in 2025.

Where does this figure come from?

World Bank. Military expenditure, % of GDP (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS). Retrieved by Invokely on 2026-10-09.

What was the highest military spending as a share of GDP in Saudi Arabia?

19% of GDP in 1984, the highest value since 1963 in this series.

More statistics for Saudi Arabia

All statistics for Saudi Arabia